Microsoft 13th Annual Edition Microsoft Capability Summit covered different accessibility projects that he recently developed. However, the highlight of the event focused on AI and its potential benefits for people with disabilities in the future.
Some topics covered at the event include the new adaptive accessories (customizable 3D printed accessories for Surface Pen), the new Microsoft 365 “Accessibility Assistant”, 13 new African languages in Microsoft Translator, and a new guide to inclusive design for cognition. .
Microsoft also mentioned numerous improvements to Seeing AI, including its new collaboration, more than 1,500 additions to the product code library, and a new inner navigation feature. Additionally, the company emphasized that LinkedIn is now more accessible, thanks to “more than 40% of LinkedIn posts” now including “at least one image and the addition of automatic alt-text captions and descriptions.”
Windows 11, as usual, was also a highlight at the event, especially the new accessibility features injected into it. Some of those mentioned were Narrador’s extended support for more Braille displays. The software giant said the system continues to improve in the area of accessibility, especially now that its voice access functionality is out of preview. In previous Insider tests, it’s also important to note that the company continues to expand the feature to more languages and dialects of English. in the recent Dev Build 23403the company even detailed that it is now being tested in Chinese (simplified and traditional), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazil) and Spanish.
On the other hand, given Microsoft’s multi-billion dollar investments in AI, it’s not surprising that it plans to leverage the technology to produce more accessibility and technology features in the future. In an interview with Forbes, Microsoft’s director of accessibility, Jenny Lay-Flurrie, shared how AI can serve as accessibility technology in certain situations.
“[AI chatbots] collate so much information for you very, very quickly. It can save a lot of time,” Flurrie said. Forbes. “If you think about someone from a mobility perspective, you can get the right level of information at your fingertips with a couple of clicks instead of having to do 10 to 20 different searches and go to multiple websites; can be there for you. It’s going to be very impactful for neurodiversity in particular… I think about dyslexia. [and] dyspraxia. There is a learning process. We are definitely learning as we go. [and learning] how to get the best out of the tools. I think there are some pretty profound implications.”
